Truist Financial Cuts Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Price Target to $225.00

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price objective lowered by stock analysts at Truist Financial from $245.00 to $225.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Truist Financial’s price target indicates a potential upside of 79.61% from the company’s current price.

ALB has been the topic of several other reports. Zacks Research cut shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Albemarle from $236.00 to $224.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Berenberg Bank lifted their price target on Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Albemarle from $216.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $198.35.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $125.27 on Friday. Albemarle has a 12 month low of $69.81 and a 12 month high of $221.00. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $138.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $164.30. The company has a market capitalization of $14.77 billion, a PE ratio of 463.99 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.20 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. Albemarle had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 11.13%. The business’s revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Albemarle will post 12.79 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total value of $3,011,721.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,078,990.68. The trade was a 15.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BOKF NA increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 5,771.4% in the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 536.7% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 121.5% in the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 299 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation is a leading global specialty chemicals company primarily engaged in the production and distribution of lithium, bromine, and catalysts. Its lithium segment supplies key components used in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics, and grid storage systems. The company’s bromine specialty products serve a wide range of industries, including oil and gas drilling fluids, fire safety solutions, and water treatment. In its catalysts division, Albemarle provides products for petroleum refining, chemical processing and emissions control.

Founded in 1994 as a spin-off from Ethyl Corporation, Albemarle has grown through strategic acquisitions and capacity expansions to become one of the world’s foremost chemical producers.